Son Goku x Minato Namikaze - The Heroes Return!
by shaniyaal
Summary: After the Cell Games, King Kai takes Goku to meet the Otherworldly fighters who had also been allowed to keep their bodies. After introductions with Olibu and Pikkon, he noticed another man standing behind them, extending a hand in greeting; a blond with wild hair and piercing blue eyes, wearing a jacket and a long, flowy white cape with the words "Fourth Hokage" written on it.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

"I must admit, your kid is one doozy of a fighter!" exclaimed King Kai, clutching his hands in front of him, floating above Snake Way. Son Goku, his right arm resting upon King Kai's back, smiled proudly. He had given up his life and taken along King Kai, Bubbles and Gregory with him, to try and save the Earth from the terrible demon Cell, but Cell had survived, stronger than ever with having taken some of Goku's cells inside his genetic code as well, and, having used the Shunkanido he stole from Goku, was now locked in a Kamehameha battle with Goku's son, the latter usually shy and timid but this time flaring with rage and the unbridled, raw power of Super Saiyan 2. Goku had foreseen this, and was thus content with giving up his life and passing the mantle of Earth's protector, onto Son Gohan. Even so, he felt it best to keep watching on. He had faith in his son, but was worried as well. He knew Gohan was a gentle soul, not wishing to harm or hurt anyone, much less kill, be they however evil. Of course, things had changed upon his transformation, he'd become less restrained, but Goku wanted to be there for his son one last time, even in death. King Kai had obliged, and set up a hotline for Goku to talk to his son telepathically.

Goku watched as Gohan continued to struggle against Cell's monstrous might. Cell had unleashed all the power he'd had into one Kamehameha wave, and Gohan, having been robbed of the use of one arm whilst attempting to save Vegeta's life, could barely hold him off.

"What's the matter Gohan?! You already have all the power you need. Just bring it out!"

"I-I can't! I can't keep this up! I-I just can't hack it dad! It's too much for me to handle! I'm just a kid… I haven't changed… n-not at all…" replied his wounded and struggling son. Goku was taken aback. He knew he would have to push his son beyond, to save the Earth. He just wished he could be beside him.

"Will you stop attacking yourself?! I don't know where you got it in your head that there's something wrong with you, 'cause there's not! You've saved my life and our friends' lives so many times, and you're going to do it again, RIGHT NOW!"

"What on Earth are you mumbling about? Chanting a little prayer before you die?", mocked Cell with a menacing smile, his hands shooting out a Kamehameha that rivaled the height of mountains, pushing back Gohan's own Kamehameha until it was almost to the face of the young, valiant Super Saiyan.

"Let it out Gohan, do it NOW!" yelled Goku. Gohan, with the apparition of his father standing beside him, clad in his usual orange and blue Gi, in his Super Saiyan state, almost as if he was shooting a Kamehameha himself, faltered for half a millisecond. Then, with his one arm dangling limply beside him, and the other emitting a monstrous Kamehameha that rivaled Cell's in height and in might, grunted a little in exertion. Suddenly, as if in response to his grunt, his Ki flared once more and the Kamehameha almost doubled in size, pushing back Cell's Kamehameha and returning the meeting point of the two gigantic beams to dead center once more as Cell grunted in shock and from the force of Gohan's Kamehameha.

Meanwhile, Piccolo, Tenshinhan, Krillin and Yamcha watched from a distance. Krillin clutched the once alluring Android 18, unconscious after having been expelled from Cell by the incredible force of Gohan's kick slamming him in the gut. Vegeta, too, looked on silently, but filled internally with rage. His rival, Kakarot, had died a hero's death, having saved his planet, and now his son was engaged in a battle which surpassed limits Vegeta couldn't even fathom. His pride damaged, he was enraged.

"You fool! Don't you realize yet you're up against the perfect weapon?!" proclaimed the maniacal Cell, as he, without showing outwardly exertion, put even more power into his own Kamehameha, taking aback both father and son.

"No way!"

"Too strong!", mumbled a dejected Gohan as the meeting point of the clash was once more brought to his face.

"Now what?!", rationalized a terrified Goku. "I've already told him to give it all he's got!" Until it hit him. "Wait! What if he's still…", he realized, stricken. Turning his attention once more to his bleeding, struggling son, he communicated. "Gohan! If anywhere in your mind you're holding back in order to protect the planet, forget about it! All the damage you do to the Earth can be fixed with the Dragon Balls. So don't hold back! Got it?!"

"Y-yeah b-but I…"

"HA HA HA HA HA HA I CAN FEEL YOU SLIPPING", chanted the psychotic villain.

Gohan once more struggled to hold on, ready to give up, that is, until he heard a voice from above that made every hair on his body stand up on end.

"MASENKO-HA!"

He looked up to see his mentor, his best friend, the man he idolized and the man who had been a second father to him, shooting a beam at his foe. It was shrugged off without any effort, as Cell just grinned maniacally and Piccolo staring incredulously. Cell had shrugged off one of the best moves in his arsenal with just his Ki. Suddenly, without moving even an inch from where he stood, Cell's Ki flared up even more, and concentrated itself much like a Ki blast, towards Piccolo. Piccolo tried to bring his arms up in defense, but it was in vain and he was blasted away like an afterthought, his body crackling with electricity, as Son Gohan watched horrified, gritting his teeth in anger.

It was not long after Piccolo was planted into the earth face first, that the other Z warriors, save for the mortally wounded Trunks and the prideful Vegeta, joined in the foray. Piccolo managed to stand on his own two feet, and emitted out his Makankosappo. Tenshinhan fired up his first Kikouhou of the day, and Yamcha and Krillin fired out Kamehamehas, although, breaking from tradition, they were yellow instead of the characteristic blue and were not accompanied by the Kamehameha chant.

"P-please guys! N-not too close! B-be careful!" yelled a worried Gohan whilst feeling the strain of his Kamehameha and his various injuries weighing him down. He was a gentle, loving soul who detested fighting, and to be dragged into something like this was something he hated with all his heart.

"Gohan. They can take care of themselves. Focus your energy, son!", reassured an onlooking Goku.

"I-I'm trying!"

"Would you stop interfering?!", screamed the irritated Cell. He was fending off the brave Super Saiyan's one handed but surely not weak Kamehameha with his own, and using his Ki to keep the attacks of the Z Warriors at bay. "You're all so anxious to die, aren't you?! Well, all you had to do was ASK!", he exclaimed, flaring up his unfathomable Ki which sent the Z Warriors flying.

"H-he hurt them! HE HURT THEM!", thought Gohan, his brows furrowed with immense anger. "HYAAAAAAAAAA!", he screamed as his own Ki flared up once more and his Kamehameha began pushing Cell's back. This was reciprocated in kind, with Cell emitting his own battle cry and putting more power into his Kamehameha, until it was dead center once more. The Z Warriors would proceed to get up again and again, and be shot down again and again by Cell's Ki, until the point where they were all drained of their Ki and didn't even have enough to stand up.

"Gohan! Raise it higher! You can win this one!" communicated Goku to his son through King Kai.

"Oh no! The Earth is gonna blow!" yelled King Kai hysterically. Goku's anxiety was starting to get the better of him but he maintained as calm an exterior as the situation had allowed the seasoned fighter. Indeed, back on Earth, rubble was rising to the air and the surface was quaking, as if bowing out as an ode to the tremendous power of the two fighters clashing.

"Release it Gohan! Release everything! Remember all the pain he's caused! The people he's hurt! Now make that your power!" cried out a desperate Goku, his apparition beside Gohan becoming even clearer, almost as if he were there himself, aiding his brave son in that amazing Kamehameha struggle.

"SAY GOODBYE!" cackled the mighty Cell, laughing maniacally the whole while, his Kamehameha having once more pushed Gohan's back to where the young Super Saiyan stood. Suddenly, a beam came up from the heavens, and hit Cell square in his backside. Bowing from the innate pressure of this attack, Cell was knocked out of focus. Standing above them, panting, was none other than the Prince of All Saiyans.

"VEGETA?!" said the distracted Cell.

"NOW'S YOUR CHANCE!" yelled the apparition of Goku, almost coming to life in that instant.

"HYAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Gohan's Kamehameha was almost like a tunnel surrounding the young man himself. He had put every last bit of energy he had into this one maneuver, and if it failed, Gohan would fall and he knew it.

Cell turned back around at the last possible instant to see the error in looking away from the battlefield for that brief second. His mouth gaped open upon seeing the massive and terrifying Kamehameha speeding towards him, as he stood there helpless to stop it. The wretched child who had beaten the perfect being was strutting towards him, broken and beat down. Still, in better shape than Cell foresaw himself in the next couple of milliseconds.

"N-N-N-N-N-NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I AM PERFECTTTTTT…..", cried out Cell vainly as Gohan's massive Kamehameha disintegrated him into nothingness. And then, there was one. The young Super Saiyan panted and huffed, before losing the golden aura and plummeting to the ground on his back, eyes shut, mouth gaping open, bleeding from everywhere, completely exhausted. He had finally won. He had finally made his father proud. He had finally rid the world of the terrible Cell.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

"Guess the Earth should be happy for a while…" King Kai groaned reservedly.

"Yeah, and you helped a lot, even if it wasn't your own choice. Thank you, King Kai." Goku said cheerfully in his usual nonchalant attitude, as his stomach began to growl. King Kai stared incredulously at him, the only man he had ever seen to have been hungry even in death. Saiyans really are bottomless pits, he thought to himself. "Ooh!" exclaimed said bottomless pit, letting out a hearty laugh that so endeared him to everyone, even King Kai. "Now that I've stopped worrying, I'm really hungry! Hey King Kai, you wouldn't happen to have any foo-?"

"ARE YOU CRAZY?" interjected the livid King Kai. "You destroyed my car, my house and my entire planet! How can I possibly have food?!"

"Oh yeah. But I have to eat, I'm starving to death!" whined the gluttonous Goku, clutching his torso all the while.

"But you're already dead…" pointed out King Kai.

"Well that makes it twice as bad! I guess I could eat these." Said Goku, chomping down on the fluffy yellow clouds surrounding Snake Way as King Kai could do nothing but look on incredulously.

Back on Earth, Gohan and the others had put together a plan to revive the beloved Son Goku. They had gathered the Dragon Balls and summoned Shenron. After having brought back all the innocent people killed by Cell, they wished Shenron to bring back Goku.

"I'm sorry I cannot do that, that wish is beyond my power."

"But we all really want him back!"

"However much you desire him to return is of no consequence. He has been brought back once, and it is beyond my power to bring him back once more."

The Z fighters are gutted until Dende, the young guardian of Earth, comes up with an idea.

"Hey, all we have to do is ask Porunga back on Namek!"

"Dende's right. Since Porunga is the original Dragon, he can revive someone as many times as he sees fit."

Krillin, Tenshinhan and Yamcha agree, and resolve to ask Shenron to transport them to Namek, when suddenly a voice echoes from the heavens.

"Hey, don't I get a say in this?" says the voice in a familiar tone that everyone recognized immediately. They start looking around to find the source of the voice. "Hi everyone, it's me, Goku!"

"See, I told you guys!" proclaimed his son, the savior of Earth.

"King Kai's letting me talk to you from here in the Otherworld! So listen up… lately I've been thinking about why the Earth is in danger, and I realized, most of the guys who attacked it were after me! Think about it, Frieza, Cell, the Androids…"

"It's an interesting point." Noted Tenshinhan.

"I guess, but where's he going with this?" Yamcha asked.

"Well, I think it would be better for the Earth if I didn't come back this time. King Kai agrees with me."

"Sort. Of." Pointed out the now dead deity.

"As a Saiyan baby I was sent to Earth to destroy it. And though all my life I've tried to do the opposite, it's kinda like I've been fulfilling that mission all along… So yeah. I'm gonna stay here now." Announced Goku to a shattered crowd of his family and friends. "I really don't mind! King Kai says I can get special treatment since I saved the Earth and all. I'll be able to keep my body, and from what I hear, there's lots of interesting people to meet! It'll be fun!"

"Hmpf! Another adventure." Piccolo remarked, grinning.

"King Kai could ask one of the dragons to revive him, but he's agreed to show me around here for a while and keep me company. I guess what I'm trying to say is… I really appreciate your feelings towards me, but you'll have to find something else to wish for. This is my home now." Goku perked up with a smile. "Gohan's so strong now! I have nothing left to teach him."

"But that doesn't mean I don't need you!" interrupted Gohan, not understanding why his father wouldn't wish to be back with him.

"You all better take notes of everything that happens in your lives! 'Cause when they're through, I'll wanna hear all about them. Until then, goodbye." Ended Goku, having shook his friends and family to the core.

"Y'know, even though he was saying goodbye, he didn't make me too sad because he was so cheery about it." Remarked his bald best friend incredulously, which led his doting family and friends to accept his decision in death and reminisce about his overall demeanor and personality in life. Gohan and the others went about their lives as normal, only without the lovable Saiyan, who stayed above.

A while later, we find Goku, King Kai and the rest bustling down Snake Way, Goku forcefully but playfully pushing the deity around like a wheelbarrow, against his vehement objections, in characteristic Goku fashion, until they sighted Bubbles and Gregory off in the distance of the treacherous, long and winding Snake Way.

"Woah! I forgot how long Snake Way was. Hey listen King Kai, can't you run any faster? We're not making good time here." Pointed out Goku.

"How many times can I say this? We can't make bad time here, because in this world time never runs out!" rebutted a slightly irritated and exasperated King Kai.

"But I still can't wait to see this master of Otherworld! Talk about the ultimate fighting challenge!"

King Kai sighed as he warned Goku not to talk lightly of the Grand Kai, which led to an obviously oblivious look on Goku's face. Seeing this, King Kai began to explain the hierarchy of the Kais to the dumb prodigy, beginning with the Kings of the North, East, South and West Quadrants, and then the Grand Kai who towered above them all. Each Kai's quadrant of the galaxy produced extremely strong fighters, who, once they died, would be allowed to train on Grand Kai's planet. Goku, finding the predicament irresistible, sped off into the distance down Snake Way. Just a few seconds later, the buffoon trotted back.

"Umm where am I going exactly?" he asked with a sheepish grin.

"To King Yemma's palace. There's the terminal for the Higher Plane which will take you there."

"On it!" reaffirmed the Saiyan, as he picked up Bubbles and Gregory and placed a hand on King Kai. Suddenly, they were gone. After exchanging a few pleasantries with King Yemma and shocking all his attendants with the fact that he had been allowed to keep his body, Goku was off on the Higher Plane on his way to Grand Kai's planet.

"Aww man, why'd we have to get stuck in this clunker of a plane… I really wanted to ride the big one…" moaned Goku, like a little child. King Kai chuckled to himself. Goku really was a little child.

"Wowwww this place has so many great fighters!" remarked Goku. King Kai, after droning on about the supremacy of Grand Kai, went further to drone on about his car, while Goku looked on, in an ironic role reversal, with King Kai becoming the babbling buffoon and Goku staring incredulously and contemplating his mental acuity.

"Y-you! It's you!" said a stupefied voice from behind them. They turned around to face the voice, and Goku saw an impish little man, bespectacled, dressed similar to King Kai, his mouth gaping and his finger pointing to the North Kai, and, standing alongside him, Piccolo! 'Wait, Piccolo isn't dead' thought Goku. But this man bore a striking resemblance. 'Oh, that's right, he must be a Namekian!'

"Well if it isn't West Kai!" proclaimed North Kai, rather defensively. Goku and the Namekian looked on, wide-eyed, wondering what was happening, as the two deities ran towards each other and locked on the other in a death gaze that seemed to turn the temperature around them up a few degrees. Goku's eyes met the Namekian's, and the Namekian's his. Goku noted that this strange man was not in fact a Namekian, but bore a striking resemblance to them. His lips were bigger and his irises were red, but other than that, he looked just like a Namekian. Goku also felt the huge surge of Ki this man was emitting, not hostile, but not friendly either. His Ki signature was very calm, neutral and huge. Goku felt butterflies in his stomach just thinking about the opportunity to face this man in battle.

"Well Northie, lemme introduce to my prized fighter, Pikkon of the West Quadrant!" boasted West Kai. "The Grand Kai called for him specifically, so just stay out of our way and… wait is that a halo above your head?"

North Kai was silent and flushed as West Kai had one of the longest laughs his counterpart in the North had ever seen him have. Goku, who North Kai hoped would have been ashamed by this predicament, was still locking eyes with the mysterious Pikkon.

"Shut up! I was involved with something really important, you know!" rebutted the dead Kai, clutching his halo, almost ready to die again due to the sheer and utter embarrassment of being a dead deity.

"That's right, sir" interjected the Saiyan. "King Kai saved my whole planet."

"Who might this be?" asked the West Kai snobbishly.

"My name's Goku, it's nice to meet you!" said Goku in his regular, cheerful attitude. Nothing could bring this man down, not even death.

"Goku's a great martial artist and a righteous fighter who defended his world and his galaxy many times!" proudly boasted the North Kai.

"Oh? Incredibly strong, you say? Surely he's nothing compared to my Pikkon!" rebutted the scorned West Kai.

"No" simply replied North Kai. "Goku. Is. Stronger."

His simple rebuttal had reached the desired effect. The West Kai was now livid.

"Oh? Do you have any idea what you're suggesting?"

"Yes. That Goku is stronger." Goaded the North Kai.

This simply led to a 'mine is bigger than yours' rant between two deities, something not commonly seen. Goku and Pikkon could do nothing but look on flabbergasted, though Goku was the only one showing it. The man's simplicity knew no bounds, he couldn't hide emotions to save his life.

As the two Kais were unable to reach a solution with mere words, they promptly commanded their respective fighters to join the foray, take on the heated battleground and prove their mettle so that the Kais could get over their childish feud. Suddenly, however, a voice came out of nowhere.

"Hey hey, now, hold on!"

"Grand Kai!" uttered the two Kais, as they and Pikkon bowed down in respect. Goku, the simple minded lug that he was, didn't pick up on this social cue until chastised by a terrified Kai.

"Goku, you have to bow or else he's gonna…"

But it was too late. From atop the roof of Grand Kai's lavish mansion arose a ball of light, that promptly and swiftly charged into North Kai and Son Goku, blowing them away in a ball of blaze and rubble. King Kai was flung far away, whereas Goku managed to stand his ground, but the dust that the incoming ball of light had kicked up made the four cough vehemently.

When the dust cleared, Goku couldn't believe his eyes. In front of him stood an old man, much older than Master Roshi, with flowy long white hair and a white beard, dressed in a white t-shirt, jeans and a jean jacket, wearing cheap sunglasses, with a boombox in one arm and a hand donning red gloves extending in a wave. The boombox was blasting some weird dynamic entry music, which reminded Goku of a certain World Martial Arts Champion at the Cell Games. Could this guy really be that strong? In the midst of these thoughts, King Kai dragged Goku down to his knees forcefully in a bow that pleased common etiquette of meeting a deity as high as the Grand Kai, while the Grand Kai was acting very un-deity-like, grooving along to his dynamic entry theme in front of his mansion. Goku was stupefied until the old geezer turned off his boombox and began talking.

"Sorry to walk in on you guys like this, but I need a favor. Pikkon, would ya go down to hell for me? King Yemma sent down this maniac called Cell and looks like he's teamed up with somebody called Frieza and they're wreaking all kinds of havoc down there."

Goku immediately spurred into action. These names were all too familiar to him, and Pikkon didn't know what he was getting into. Only he could take those two on.

"Right away, sir." Nodded Pikkon as he flew away in the blink of an eye.

"Wait!" yelled Goku. "You're gonna need all the help you can get!" as he flew behind him, despite North Kai's objections, but the Grand Kai was unbothered by this.

"I didn't ask for your help."

"Yeah, well I've fought both of them before and you're gonna need it."

The two fighters stepped down into hell, running into Goz and Mez. Goku reminded them of how he had once fell down Snake Way, and they raced and wrestled him, prompting them to remember him and rejoice. Goku and Pikkon asked for where Cell and Frieza were, and headed there immediately.

Cell and Frieza were having the time of their lives. Even in death, they had not renounced their evil ways and resorted to making Hell their personal playground, torturing and killing King Yemma's servants. Cell, for fun, decided to throw one into a mountain of spikes, an idea that was met with cheers and encouragement from both Frieza and his dastardly father. Just as the poor man was about to be turned into the world's largest pin cushion, a flash of light saved him.

"I-it can't be! Goku?!" muttered Frieza, wide eyed.

"Yes, it's me and I'm stopping you once more!" said the resolute Saiyan.

"Ginyu Force, attack!" yelled Frieza.

"Pikkon, catch!" said Goku, flinging the terrified servant over to him. "HYAAAAAAAAAAA!" he yelled, his hair standing on end, like that of his Super Saiyan state except they were his normal color, channeling a little Ki, enough to make short work of them anyways. What followed next, was magnificent. A punch to the gut. A knee to the gut. An elbow to the chin. Followed by an elbow to the back of the head. Delivered in fluid, rapid movements so no one even knew what hit them until Goku stood once more in stance and powered down. The entirety of the Ginyu Force came crashing down below, into a pool filled with blood. Frieza and his father could only look on, stupefied by Goku's strength, but Cell remained calm as ever.

"Don't you worry. After all, it was me who killed him in the first place!" he said, with a menacing grin.

"Well, who said we were worried?" said Frieza, a little coloud returning to his face. "After you, my friend."

Cell flew up to Goku, guns blazing, as Goku prepared himself. This fight would take almost everything he had. Goku gritted his teeth in anticipation of the force about to hit him, when out of nowhere, a blazing ball of fire rushed past him.

"What the-?"

The ball headed straight for Cell and collided with the green bug monster. Cell was blown back, he never knew what hit him. Goku could barely catch a glimpse, and he couldn't believe what he saw. Inside the ball of fire was none other than Pikkon, launching a fearsome kick that connected with Cell's chin. 'So fast' thought Goku, as Pikkon spun around and dissipated his own flames. He flew up to Cell, who was still reeling from Pikkon's massive blow, and gave him a swift right backhand which sent him flying into the same pool as the Ginyus.

"Who's that?!" yelled Frieza, his eyes meeting the hard, cold stare of Pikkon. His white robes flowing in the wind, hands balled up into fists, arms half flexed by his side, reminded the Frost Demon of that one Namekian who could keep up with him in his third form even, back on Namek. Suddenly, Pikkon vanished and reappeared in front of Frieza and his father, dealing a quick elbow to King Cold's gut and a swift lateral palm to Frieza's face before they could even register his presence in front of them. Father and son collapsed to the ground in tandem, after which Pikkon, deciding to retrieve the drowned belligerants, flew up into the air. When he was at level with the pool, he straightened his back, crossed his arms in front of his chest, and began spinning, gradually gaining the speed of a tornado, which caused the blood below to reciprocate in kind and spin along with him. The unforgiving pool launched the villains out and, ironically, straight into that mountain of spiked Cell had wished to throw King Yemma's servant into. Impaled, beaten and stripped of their pride, the only thing left was to imprison them to completely zap out whatever else they had left. Goku and Pikkon simply looked to each other, acknowledging the other's prowess and smiling.

They reported back to Grand Kai's mansion promptly, where they found two more Kais, and a whole bunch of fighters standing behind all four Kais. The first was a big man wearing sunglasses, who was being addressed as South Kai. The other was a short, stout woman, being addressed as the East Kai. North Kai was engaged in small talk with the other Kais, mostly just defending the elephant, or rather, the halo in the room. Upon seeing Goku, he took it upon himself to excuse himself and show the newbie around.

"Hey guys, this is our new student, Goku!" announced North Kai to his group of fighters. "Goku, these are your seniors from the North Galaxy. You'll learn a great deal from them. 7,000 years ago, Migoren fought valiantly with aliens. 3,500 years ago, Srate bravely protected his planet by turning away an asteroid. Then, there's this guy! Olibu. He's from Earth like you, and a few legends are based on him! Everyone here is an amazing martial artist, and they're working on their 10,000 years of training before they can get a private lesson from Grand Kai himself."

"What?! So everyone has to train that long before the Grand Kai trains them?"

King Kai wasn't listening anymore. The other Kais had caught onto his diversive tactics and had become wise to them. They trounced upto the dead deity and starting chanting once more, to the extreme irritation of North Kai.

"Well, since this event has brought us together for the first time in 3,000 years, let's hold a martial arts tournament!" suggested West Kai. The other Kais didn't see why not so they headed to Grand Kai to ask for his permission.

"Oh yeah, that's a great idea! In fact, I'll kick it up a notch. Whoever wins, can get a private lesson from me right now!" chuckled the Grand Kai.

This riled up all the fighters of their representative Kais. Goku was allowed to mingle with the other warriors for a while before the tournament. As he headed back to Pikkon and Olibu, he saw another man standing behind them, extending a hand in greeting: a blond, with wild hair and piercing blue eyes that gave the kindest of looks, wearing a flak jacket and, over it, a long, flowy white cape with the Japanese letters that spelt "Fourth Hokage", giving him a friendly smile.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Goku approached the blond man without apprehension, in his characteristic happy-go-lucky attitude, taking his hand extended in a gesture of friendship with a hand of his own, as both the Saiyan and the Hokage smiled at each other, not even having exchanged names yet. Something about the other's personality drew them in, it was almost like looking in a mirror.

"Hello. My name is Minato Namikaze." Said the blond man.

"Hi there! I'm Goku, and I'm a Saiyan, from Earth!" cheerfully responded the idiot Saiyan.

Minato's eyes widened. He was befuddled, looking inquisitively at the Saiyan as if he had said something ludicrous.

"I-I'm from Earth too…" he managed to mumble, taken aback by the fact that this man had been granted permission to come up to Grand Kai's world if he was from Earth. Minato should have known of this man's existence, yet, in all his years as a ninja feared among all of the Great Nations, no ninja resembling Goku had ever made his acquaintance.

"Really?! That's so awesome!" Goku's eyes gleamed with excitement, not realizing the repercussions of the situation that had come to pass. He just assumed he was from Earth like Olibu but King Kai forgot to introduce him. "Hey King Kai! Why didn't you tell me about Minato here?" he called out to his once mentor. "I'm from Mount Paozu! Where are you from?" he addressed Minato once more, who seemed puzzled by the strange geography this man was speaking of.

'Mount Paozu? Which Nation is that in?' he wondered to himself, before straightening himself back up and replying, albeit with a smile once more, "I was the Fourth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves a mere ten years ago. Surely you must've heard of the Yellow Flash of the Leaf?" to which Goku's eyes narrowed in reflection.

"Hokage? Village Hidden in the Leaves? Where's that?" Goku responded, with one hand on his waist and the other rubbing the back of his head, as if trying to place the odd location Minato had spoken of.

"You-You've never heard of it? What's going on here? I thought you said you were from Earth!" demanded Minato, as confused as could be.

"I am from Earth! I was one of the Earth's greatest protectors, one of the Z Fighters!" retorted Goku, equally confused.

"Ah there you are, Goku, I thought I'd lost you! The tournament's about to begin, shouldn't you be getting ready?" said a jaunty North Kai as he was walking alongside his fellow Kais, his halo sticking out like a sore thumb amongst the deities.

"King Kai, who's this man? He says he's from Earth!" Goku addressed King Kai, all the while pointing to a shocked Minato, who was looking indignantly first at the finger Goku was pointing at him and then at the dead Kai.

"Hmm? From Earth? I don't think I've seen this man before…" said King Kai, his finger to his chin as if deep in thought.

"Allow me to explain, North Kai" interjected a female voice, which Minato felt relieved to hear, and Goku and King Kai were the ones left clueless this time.

"This is one of my prized fighters, Minato Namikaze. He says he's from Earth because he is, only not the Earth of the North Galaxy. You see, at the dawn of humankind, two almost identical planets existed in the four galaxies, one in the North and one in mine, the East. Apparently, on both planets, humans settled and called it Earth, by funny coincidence. One is mine, where the humans learned Chakra instead of Ki, and called themselves Shinobi, or Ninja. They organized themselves into Nations and then Hidden Villages of Shinobi for each Nation, as an entity equivalent to but independent of their respective nations, the nations being ruled by the Daimyo and the Villages by the Kage. They gave the titles Hokage, Kazekage, Raikage, Tsuchikage and Mizukage to each Village Leader, to represent the nation their village stems from. Pretty neat system, if you ask me" the East Kai concluded her explanation, with Minato nodding throughout the last part and Goku and North Kai staring at her with mouths agape.

"Yes, that's very right. It was put into place by the example of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and his best friend turned rival, Madara Uchiha, both legendary Shinobi with power to rival armies on their very own" chimed in Minato.

"U-Unbelievable! Here I thought there was only one Earth in Universe 7…" mumbled the North Kai in amazement, though low enough for the still reeling Goku to not hear. Explaining universes to this buffoon would take eternity, and the last thing he wanted was for Goku to be even more excited about fighting strong fighters from other universes. Or, Heaven forbid, challenging the God of Destruction to a match to test his ability. 'No, he wouldn't do that' King Kai chuckled to himself. 'He may be an idiot but he knows better.'

"Oh wow!" Goku finally managed to recover from absorbing so much information in such a short amount of time. He was back to his state of hyper excitability and his eyes once more began to gleam with the trademark Goku simplicity that so endeared him to everyone. "So, you guys are ninjas and you don't use Ki?! You gotta show me how that Chakra thingy works! Is it stronger than Ki?! Is the other Earth beautiful too? How long have you been up here? Do you guys have Dragon Balls too? And Saiyans?! And Namekians?! And Yardrats…"

"Whoa whoa, slow down there buddy!" Minato replied with a comical little droplet of sweat running down his forehead from the barrage of questions Goku had thrown at him. "Let's go before we get late for our matches, huh Goku?" he followed up with a wink and a little twinkle, beckoning Goku into Grand Kai's mansion. Goku immediately found himself drawn to Minato, and Minato to Goku. Although they had barely known each other for five minutes, something about the other was warm and inviting, and they shared a mutual feeling that they would become close friends soon enough.

"Heh, yeah. And I'd love to face off against you in this tournament. Don't hold back, Minato!" Goku replied with a smirk of his own, though not nastily but in a way that riled Minato up for the match to come.

"Haha yep, you can count on it Goku!" replied Minato with a wave of his hand as he went along with East Kai. "Good luck, I hope to see you in the finals."

As Goku went along with North Kai, he was reflecting back on his conversation with Minato, as suddenly a thought penetrated his mind. 'Wait, every time he smiled, laughed or talked, he didn't sound genuinely happy. What was with him? What sadness did he have to suffer to be like this? He didn't seem to be a bad guy, so what could it be?' Goku was deep in thought before Grand Kai opened the doors to what Goku could only gawk at. An asteroid was floating in the midst of a galaxy, and on it was the ring, which resembled that of the Tenkaichi Budokai. Surrounding the ring were the spectator seats, filled to the brim with the residents of Heaven, who wanted some entertainment, and once they heard about Grand Kai's tournament, sought out permission from King Yemma to go above just to witness the tournament.

"Is it okay? I had it redesigned just for this tournament" snickered Grand Kai.

"Yeah, it's awesome! I can't wait to fight here!"

"And now, for the first match of the semifinals, it's Son Goku of the North Galaxy against Minato Namikaze of the East Galaxy! Give them a hand, folks, they both come from their respective Earths believing they were the only ones in the Universe with Earth. Minato came here a mere twelve years ago, and Goku only just arrived! This is gonna be a great match everyone!" announced the mushroom-looking announcer, as Goku, clad in his orange and blue Gi, still donning his weighted vest, armbands and boots, and Minato, clad in his blue spandex uniform and green jacket with the Uzumaki clan symbol, wearing his white cape with flames at the bottom and the Japanese Kanji for 'Fourth Hokage' on the back and underneath, his open toed sandals, made their way to the ring, grinning at each other challengingly. North Kai and East Kai looked on, chests jutting out in pride, confident in the fighters representing their respective galaxies.

"Let's give it our best shot, Goku!" the blond Shinobi winked at the Saiyan.

"Yep, I'm getting excited, Minato!" the Saiyan replied.

As both fighters stepped into the ring, the tension in the air was palpable. Each was unaccustomed to even the basic style of energy the other was using, and sizing their opponents up was crucial to determining how to attain a favorable outcome of the clash. They both eased up and got into their respective fighting stances, Goku with both knees bent, head almost to the ground, one arm slung behind his back and the other just lateral to his flexed knee and Minato holding one of his trademark Flying Raijin marked kunai between his two open palms as arms extended.

"Do your best, honey! I'm proud of you! Give it all you've got! I love you!" yelled an auburn haired woman from the stands, as both men's attention went over to her.

"Thanks Kushina! I love you too! I will!" waved back Minato. Goku was glad to see this as it reminded him of Chi-Chi. No matter how strict she got or how much they disagreed on how to raise Gohan, she was the love of his life and he really did miss her.

"Wait, EAST KAI THAT'S CHEATING! HE'S USING WEAPONS!" yelled North Kai, indignantly.

"Nah, I'll allow it. This guy looks like he's pretty skilled with those knives and I wanna see a good fight, these are the semifinals after all!" chortled Grand Kai, sitting up on his red throne, cigarette in hand.

"Fighters, you may begin!" signaled the announcer.

Minato quickly drew dozens more kunai from two little satchels around his waist and flung them around the ring, covering the ring in marked kunai. Goku was stunned, but unfazed, as he rushed towards Minato to deliver a blindingly fast barrage of kicks and punches, but before even one connected, Minato had disappeared. Goku looked around frantically trying to locate his opponent, feeling very out of his element with the Chakra user having very minimal Ki, and thus Goku was not able to sense him like he was used to, and attuning his senses to sensing Chakra would take too long, he simply didn't have the time to learn that now so he was just going with his super heightened sight and hearing. However, Minato, being the experienced ninja that he was, was an expert in camouflage tactics, all of which had taught him very well how to obscure himself from not only sight and hearing but also from smell.

"AH-HA, FOUND YOU! HYAAA!" Goku turned his attention to the skies where Minato was perched up on a small asteroid floating very close to the ring itself besides one of his knives and he fired a quick Ki blast. The blast approached Minato with light speed and Goku looked confident he'd won. Just as his yellow beam of energy was about to collide with the Shinobi, however, Minato vanished once more. Goku heightened his senses again to find the ninja and picked him up behind him, crouching to touch another one of his kunai and the Saiyan immediately caught on. 'So he can transport to his knives hmm? That could be a problem, I couldn't even see the exact moment he transported and I have no way of telling where he'll pop up next.'

"So, Minato, I can see why you were called the Yellow Flash now. Your speed is incredible!" Goku stood straight to offer praise to the young Shinobi who stood up as well.

"Thanks, Goku, but I've fought many battles using this Flying Raijin jutsu of mine and no one's ever been able to find me as quickly as you did" replied back Minato with a smile.

"Oh is that what it's called? Wow, that's a nice trick. But…" Goku trailed off as he raised his right hand to his forehead, the index and middle finger joined to each other and connected to his forehead. Suddenly, Goku vanished into thin air as Minato's eyes widened with shock and a familiar voice whispered in his ear. "It's way too similar to my Shunkanido, Instant Transmission" as a blow to the back of his head sent him flying.

"Wow, that was just like my Flying Raijin! What is this guy?" Minato said to himself as he struggled to get back up. His head felt like it was hit by a falling boulder. Turning his attention from his throbbing head back to the spiky haired man in front of him, he said "Wow Goku, you're even faster than I am and that's not something I ever experienced when I was living. This match really is fun!"

"Hee hee yeah, I think so too Minato! I'm really glad we get to fight, you're really strong!" chuckled the good natured Saiyan powerhouse.

"Alright then, time to kick it up a notch. Fire Style, Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" proclaimed the blond Shinobi as he performed multiple hand signs too fast for the human eye to discern and brought his hand upto his mouth and bellowed out small but numerous bullets of fire, which Goku dodged easily. "Water Style, Water Dragon Jutsu!" The chant was accompanied once more by lightning fast hand seals after which a dragon made entirely of water erupted from Minato's hands and lunged at Goku. "HYAA!" simply grunted the Saiyan as he shot out a one handed Ki blast which tore through the dragon with ease and headed towards Minato, who once more began performing hand seals and touched the floor of the ring with both palms, yelling "Earth Style, Mud Wall!" A giant wall of rock erupted from the ground which barely withstood the force of Goku's Ki blast which had taken little to no effort on the part of the Saiyan.

"Wow Goku, I am impressed! No one has been able to push me this far, but okay, let's just see how you do now." Minato's eyes closed as his hands went into a prostrating gesture, palms clapped to each other just in front of his chest and elbows straight. Goku noticed something strange, for some reason Goku could now sense Minato's energy a lot better now and for some reason it felt like a Spirit Bomb. "Sage Mode, activate! Kurama Yin Mode, activate!" yelled Minato, as his irises turned from piercing blue to amber yellow and pupils became cross-like wide slits. His body was now engulfed in orange-yellow flame, as were his clothes and sparking blond hair. Flames were flying up from his body, as his energy felt frightening, not by its magnitude, not to Goku, but more by its violent nature, but at the same time, brimming with life energy, so much so that small trees began growing next to him.

"Wow Minato, what is that? How'd you transform? I thought you were just a human, can humans transform on your Earth?" Goku asked, looking unfazed.

"Well, it's a long story, but let's just say I'm way stronger now than I was before" Minato simply replied.

"Okay then, I'll show you a little something too!" Goku tensed his body as he bent his knees and flexed his arms by his side, and yelled "KAIOKEN!" His entire body was engulfed in a blood red aura, and the force of his energy almost blew everyone away, save for a single Pikkon, who was watching the match intensely, intent on fighting Goku in the finals. Minato was agape at this new development and simply stared at the Saiyan.

"Well, how do you like that?"

"That's so cool Goku!"

Goku and Minato prepared for Round Two. Goku brought his arms to his side and his palms in a claw shape, facing each other, whilst Minato used his own two hands upturned in a similar claw shape and the arms his Ninetails Chakra were forming extending upwards in the same claw shape.

"Let's end this with one final blow, Minato! KAAAAA MEEEEEE"

"Yes Goku, let's! SAGE ART!"

"HAAAAA MEEEEEEE"

"MASSIVE RASENGAN"

"HAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

"BARRAGE!"

Goku's blue Ki beam and Minato's six massive Chakra bombs headed towards each other with full force and collided in the middle of the space between the two fighters. The attacks were constitutionally very different but their power was very much equal, as both fighters struggled to maintain their attacks without losing ground. Both fighters held on, grunting in exertion all the while, while the attacks struggled against each other, the Kamehameha overpowering the Rasengans just a little which was reciprocated by the Rasengans overpowering the Kamehameha just a little. Goku was by now feeling the strain of the Kaioken and Minato was begging Kurama for more Chakra, which Kurama was trying to infuse rapidly, but to no avail.

"Alright that does it, KAIOKEN TIMES THREE!" Yelled Goku, as aura grew even bigger and his Kamehameha almost doubled in size, obliterating the Rasengans and colliding with Minato head on, sending the Shinobi engulfed in the Ki blast flying outside the ring. East Kai was shocked, as she'd never seen Minato been defeated in battle before, but this newbie had done it.

"And the winner is, Son Goku of the North Galaxy!" triumphantly proclaimed the announcer as Minato struggled to get back up, only to see an extended hand in front of him. Looking up, it was Goku standing over him.

"Hey, Minato! That was awesome, you really made me go all out for that one! Wow, you're really strong. Let's fight again!" Goku chuckled as Minato sighed sheepishly and took his hand. His strong admiration for Goku grew even more with that gesture.

"Yeah Goku, I'd like that! Thanks!" replied the Shinobi, getting back to his feet.

"Oh my God Minato are you okay? Why you, look what you did to my husband, you'll regret this, I'm gonna rip your head off!" screamed a frantic Kushina Uzumaki as she tended to her husbands wounds as well as giving Goku a fiery hot death glare he was afraid was going to melt right through his thick skull. Yep, she really was like Chi-Chi.

"No, honey, it's absolutely fine. I'm not hurt, and besides, Goku's my friend" Minato comforted the Red Hot Habanero of the Leaf as her glare softened.

"Ma'am, I'm really sorry, I hope you can forgive me. Your husband is one of my closest friends here and I don't wanna upset you" Goku apologized in the sincerest manner he knew to. Kushina's expression changed from absolutely livid to kind, caring and gentle.

"It's okay, Goku was it? Please come visit us sometime, we'd love to have you. Let's go, Minato" she waved goodbye as she lugged her battered and bruised husband away from the tournament ring.


End file.
